Brassiere



NOV. y13, 1945. Y M|LLER 2,388,757

BRASSIERE Filed Jam 19, 1944 lbevw Miller By v orneys.

Patentedv Nov. 13, 1945.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,388,751 BaAsslnE Alberta Miller, Indianapolis, Ind.

Appllcationvlanuary 19, 1944, vSerial No. 518,862

This invention concerns a brassire.

`it is the principal object of this invention to provide a brassire which will retain a predetermined position on the body, and which serves to hold the bust irmly yet comfortably, particularly during strenuous physical activity such as may arise in factory work, military service, sports or other exercise.

With that in mind, it is a further object o! this invention to provide a brassire, which is securely positioned by itself, which can easily be placed and replaced upon the body. independent of other garments, and which does not have to be attached to other garments, nor does it require any attaching or hooking in itself, if so desired.

- position.

The two symmetrical cups vll and i2, which According to another object oi.' this invention.

the cups engaging over the breasts are to be arranged by themselves and in connection with the means retaining the brassire on the body, to t properly at all times, yielding and adjusting themselves primarily at those portions of a pair of such cups which are turned away from each other.

According to one feature of this invention, a brassire thereof includes a strap which, in the manner of a belt, `encircles and is allocated at the waist and serves as an anchoring means for the cups.

These and other objects and features of this invention will be better understood from thev following discussion thereof, which is rendered in Vconnection with the accompanying drawing.

'I'his drawing, however, and the speciilc details pertaining thereto, are to be interpreted in illustration and not in limitationof the instant invention. j

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is the front view o! an embodiment o! this invention allocated upon the torso of a woman.

Fig. 2 is a corresponding side view, the extremi. ties oi the body being in a slightly different position. v

Fig. 3 is a corresponding rear View.

Fig. 4 is a detail front view of the frame of one of the symmetrical cups and the straps extending therefrom, this figure relating to the left cup and side of the brassire.

Fig. 5 is a schematic cross-section of a model portion of one of the cups, the level of the section and the direction in which the view is taken being pointed out by a dot-dash line, an arrow, andthe numeral 5 in the view of Fig. 4, in relation to the frame of a cup'there shown. I

Fig. 6 is the iront view of another embodiment 3 Claims. (Cl. 2--42) of this invention, which can be opened and closed at the front. and which is shown in.V an opened engage over the left and right breasts oi' the user,

are predeterminedly spaced relatively to a strap.

i3 fitting around the waist of the user, which strap will hereinafter be referred to as belt.

The two cups li and l2 preferably are relatively predeterminedly spaced, the drawing showing for such purpose a pair of crossed interconnecting straps il.

Roughly relatively equally spaced in an angular sense, three straps extend from. each of the cups il and l2, and connect to the belt. These are the shoulder straps l5 which extend over the shoulders to the back, the lateral straps I6 which extend below the'arms to the back. and the diaphragm straps Il at the front.

It is an advantage of improved support in the instant invention, that correspondingstraps may cross each other at the front or in the back, as it is shown in connection withstraps I4, i5, ll. In order to preserve a predetermined flexibility in the bracing Ivprefer to allow each one of these straps to perform its function independently, i. e. they are normally not fastened upon leach other where they cross. In order to provide for a better balance and distribution of stresses, the straps may be bifurcated at their ends, so that a strap engages at relatively spaced points on a cup or on the belts. Thus straps l5 show the bifurcations IB by which they engage upon the cups.

Similarly auxiliary straps i9 extend to straps I8 from points of the peripheries of the cups, which points are removed from the points of attachment of said straps IB on the cups, respectively. Straps i9 tie onto straps IS at points removed from the cup, e. g. by a stitch 2t. By that numeral 20, stitches are generally indicated where parts may be fastened upon each other by sewing.

Those and all other straps herein may be made y longitudinally adjustable as to length, as it is commonly practiced in the brassire art. I prefer however, to make all adjustments permanent.V

so that, after fitting, the brassire is and remains predeterminedly arranged. The straps should be limp, and they may be elastic, in part at least. Generally the straps may be executed as ribbons or tubes of soft textile. `'I'hey may stretch in whole or in part, in which case .they are correspondingly made of elastic material; or an elastic material may be accommodated inside of the tubes of soft material, in which case. the material of the tube will be gathered. 'I'he drawing shows such gathering upon the belt Il, upon the lateral straps I8, and upon the portions 2| of shoulder The drawing also shows each cup may be executed in an outer layer 23 and an inner layer 24.

which are sewed together marginally with a ruffle 25 extending therebeyond. l

Near the base of the limp cup thus formed I show a-reinforcing frame 26 to be inserted between the layers 23 and 24, upon which the various straps, with the exception oi.' the belt, are fastened. As thesestraps extend away from the frame 28 they are, of course, also engaged by the seam circumferentially interconnecting the layers 23 and 24.

Frame 26 is shown as an elastic band. It is a substantially circular loop which is predeteryminedly conical, the ends, at which the elastic band closes upon itself, being crossed at a slant where they attach upon each other for attaining that shape of a conical frustum, as indicated at 21. On parts of frame 26 the elastic action may be eliminated or restricted, sectorially orzonally, by afxing non-stretching material thereto. Thus the drawing shows the straps I8 to be extended and to be folded over the top edge of part of the elastic band as a piping, beginning at the one attenuated end 28 of said elastic band or frame 26 and extending to point 29 thereof. Thus the elasticity of the two frames 28 of the pair of cups is limited along those portions, at which those frames are turned towards each other, whereas the elasticity is not restricted where the cups extend away from each other. On the other hand the gathered extension 30 of strap I9 limits their elasticity at said portion of a zone of the frame at the top only, but not at the bottom.

In order to put to use a brassire of the type just described, it is simply slipped over the head onto the body, the arms being inserted between straps i and I6 upon each side. The slanted arrangement of all straps relatively `to the belt facilitates that operation, because they permit a circumferential spreading of the brassire, whereas they oder a very eiective definite cross-bracing after they, the cups and the belt have been positioned upon the body.

If it is preferred that the belt be non-elastic. it may be provided with a buckle or clasp, and then may be closed around the waist after the brassire has been placed upon the body. For

purposes of reducing the number of elastic parts and straps, or if it is desirable to put on the brassire in the manner of a jacket, all straps crossing across the front of the body, may be rendered detachable, so that the brassire may be opened in full. The schematic view of Fig. 6 illustrates such a modification.

Instead of being fastened at one of their ends at a substantially common point upon each of the cups as it was the case in the embodiment so far described, the respective ends of each set of straps I4 and I'I are jointed together. 5 stantially at that junction, and at the said point, cooperating disengageable connecting means are provided, such means being indicatedin Fig. 6 as hook and eye sets 3| and l2, respectively. In addition Fig. 6 shows two hook and eye sets. and 2l for closing the belt I3 at the front. A brassiere of this modification of Fig. 6 may be placed upon the body like a Jacket and the elasticity of straps may be further restricted.

Where the term cup or cups is herein referred to in combination with straps, it is to be broadly interpreted and concerns any holder for one of the breasts or both breasts together as they are known inthe respective art.

Having thus described my invention in detail, yet I do not wish tonbe limited thereby, except as the state of the art and the appended claims may require, for it is obvious that various modincations and changes may be made in the form of embodiment of my invention, without departing from the spirit and scope thereof.

What I claim is:

1. A brassire comprising cups to accommodate the breasts, a belt to circle the waist and spaced relatively to said cups, a pair of crossed straps interconnecting inner sides of said cups, a pair of crossed straps each connecting one of said cups to said belt at the front, a pair of shoulder straps each connecting one of said cups to the back of said belt, and side straps connected with outer sides of said cups and each extended downwardly and rearwardly and connected with said belt adjacent the lower end of a shoulder strap.

2. A brassire comprising a pair of interconnected cups each serving to accommodate one of the breasts of the wearer and movable an` gularly relative to each other, a waist-encircling belt, a first shoulder strap extending from the top of one of said cups to a point in the rear of said belt, a second shoulder strap extending from the top of the other one of said cups to a point in the rear of said belt, straps extending from outer sidesof said cups and connected to said belt at substantially the points of said belt where said shoulder straps connect thereto, and straps connecting lower portions of said cups with the front portion of said belt in spaced relation to each other circumferentially of the belt.

3. A brassire comprising a pair of interconnected cups movable relative to each other each serving to accommodate one of the breasts of the wearer, a waist-encircling belt, two shoulder straps freely crossed at the rear and each connecting one of said cups to the rear of said belt, a third and a fourth strap each attached at one end upon said belt adiacent the lower end of a shoulder strap and at its other end to the outer side of a companion one of said cups, and front straps connecting lower portions of said cups with the front of said belt.

ALBERTA MILLER.

Bubi 

